A
supernatural suspense novel about a snarky anti-heroine and her
motley crew trying to stop the unstoppable. The fifth novel in the
popular Dying for a Living series, Worth Dying For picks up two
months after the events of Dying Light.

The
gang is in New York and much to Jesse’s surprise, they are all
still alive. Jesse, Ally, Rachel, Gideon and Maisie have managed to
stay off of Caldwell’s radar for months. But when your enemy can
control minds and teleport, there isn’t a safe place in the world
where you can hide. They have a plan for stopping his genocidal
reign, but it will require a 2500-mile road trip to Cochise, Arizona,
the abandoned military base where it all began.

Shrum's
writing is smart, imaginative, and insanely addictive! I have begun
to think of her books as my Kory Krack. I beg of you to pick them up.
You will NOT regret it! ~
Darynda Jones, New York Times Bestselling Author of the Charley
Davidson series

This
book and author are now among my favorites! Wow! I might be a little
partial to this story because I love morbid comedy, urban fantasy,
and a good mystery. I'm also a big fan of original ideas, since
they're so rare anymore. But this one has it all! ~
Angela Roquet, author of the Lana Harvey Reapers Inc. series

Shrum
is a master at blending a breezy narrative with genuine weight to
story and characters. Hysterical, moving, and fascinating all at
once. ~
John K. Addis, author of The Eaton

Excerpt:

“So
what’ll it be?” I ask her. “Water? Juice? I don’t think we
actually have Gatorade, but I can walk down to the store.”

“Water’s
fine.” Ally falls back against cushions and grins up at me. A light
pink blush spreads over her cheeks. She finger-combs her hair. “My
hair is so pretty. I love my hair.”

I
snort. “I love your hair too.”

“What
else about me is cute?” she asks.

“Everything.”
I fluff the pillow for her and search the room for a blanket. I yank
a red velvety throw off the back of a chair as Gideon slips out of
the bedroom and passes me on his way to the mini fridge. He grabs one
of the wrapped water glasses from the bar above.

“Grab
us one too.” I have zero problems assigning tasks to other people.
Sometimes I wonder if it was a mistake going into death-replacing.
Sure, I was a great death replacement agent, and dying for other
people is cool, but I’m really good at bossing people around.

It’s
like a calling.

Gideon
fills two water glasses with some fancy bottled water from the fridge
and hands me a glass. I don’t dare remind him that Ally vowed not
to drink this water yesterday. She ranted about the effect of plastic
on the environment for ten whole minutes. I could’ve reminded her
that the planet is about to explode anyway, but that meant Gideon
would’ve won the argument and I’m Team Ally all the way.

I
put the glass of water in her hand. What she doesn’t know won’t
hurt her. “Here you go. Drink up.”

She
waves her water around. “I just feel so good, you know?”

I
smile. “I can tell.”

She
runs a hand through her hair. “It’s a new year. A new beginning.
And we have a great plan for kicking Caldwell’s butt.”

“We
do.”

“And
you’re so cute and you kissed me.”

With
arched eyebrows, Gideon closes the bedroom door behind him.
Thankfully, the sound of the television comes on, affording us some
privacy.

I
sink down onto the sofa beside her. “I’ll do it again if you want
me too. I’ll kiss you a million times.”

She
bites her lip and I’m about to lose it. I lean forward to kiss her
but she starts talking again, so I hang there mid-smooch, lips
puckered.

“Life
is so good right now. No one is stabbing us, burying us alive,
beating us up, or kidnapping the dog,” she goes on, her voice
echoing inside her water glass. Her face pinches. “That means we
are probably about to die.”

I
press my lips together and sigh. “Don’t say that. You’ll jinx
us.”

It’s
difficult getting her to sit up, but I manage it. I want her to drink
this water. I tilt the glass toward her lips, encouraging her.

“This
is good,” she says and frowns at the water. “Is this tap water?”

“Yep.”

“Because
I’m not drinking that $15 water Gideon bought.”

“It’s
tap,” I say again. “You’re just too drunk to taste it.”

Ally
shrugs and finishes the glass. Then she hands me her empty glass.

“You
want more?”

“No,”
she grins. “I want something else.”

“We’ve
got chips, but that’s about it. And Rachel can’t close a bag to
save her life, so they’re probably stale.”

She
shakes her head, grinning.

Then
I realize what she’s saying.

“Oh.”
I smile. “Okay.”

She
crawls over the pillow between us and pulls herself into my lap. She
straddles me, wrapping her arms around my neck. She kisses me once on
the cheek, probably a missed target rather than a sweet gesture, and
then manages to get my mouth the second time.

She
pulls back. “God, is it you or is it really hot in here?”

“We’re
still wearing our coats.”

She
laughs and looks down at herself. “Oh. Right.”

I
reach up behind her and pull her jacket off. “Better?”

She
snuggles up to me. “You’re still hot.”

“Thanks
for noticing.”

“Let
me help you take your coat off.”

“Okay.”
I let her attempt to pull off the jacket, but it’s not really going
anywhere and she accidentally pulls my hair twice. So I help her get
my jacket off and throw it over the arm of the sofa. One of the throw
pillows falls to the floor with a poof.

I
try to find the voice to tell her it’s more than okay. She would
have been naked an hour ago in the grubby bathroom of some bar if she
wasn’t such a germaphobe.

She
is so beautiful. Her eyes are bright, reflecting the lamplight. Her
face is flushed from the alcohol, her smile lazy. Her eyes
half-closed. My heart pounds in my chest, thudding against my ribs so
hard it hurts.

“What’s
wrong?” A frown creases her face and I think she can hear my heart
throbbing. “Don’t you think I’m pretty?”

“Don’t
be stupid.”

I
reach up and pull her down into my arms. I kiss her, even more deeply
than I did on the balcony. I slip my hand under her shirt and unsnap
her bra with one twist of my fingers.

She
gasps in my mouth and the sound of it makes my whole body shudder.

“Lay
down,” I command.

She
laughs, surprised, but her voice goes all deep and breathy. “Yes,
sir.”

I
climb on top of her, positioning myself between her legs. I kiss her
neck and she squirms, bucking her hips up against mine.

“Do
you love me?” she asks.

“More
than anyone.”

“Are
you sure?”

I
cover her mouth with mine. “Please stop talking.” I pull back.
“Unless you want me to stop.”

“No,
no.” She grabs the front of my hoodie, twisting it up in her fists
and pulls me down on top of her.

About
the Author:

Kory
M. Shrum lives in Michigan with her partner Kim and her ferocious
guard pug Josephine. She is very fond of naps and foods made of
sugar, which is, as you can imagine, a deadly combination. But she
tries to compensate for her extreme physical laziness with her
overactive imagination. She's an active member of SFWA, HWA, and the
Four Horsemen of the Bookocalypse, where she's known as Conquest.
She's the author of five contemporary (and somewhat dark) fantasy
novels in the Dying for a Living series: Dying for a Living, Dying by
the Hour, Dying for Her: A Companion Novel, Dying Light, and Worth
Dying For.

Dying
for a Living has over 190 5-star reviews and is a free ebook.

When
not writing, she can be found teaching, traveling, and wearing a gi.
She's very likely to tempt you to an ominous tarot or palm
reading--anything spooky-foo to pass the time until Guardians of the
Galaxy or Sherlock return. She's not-so-secretly dying for the next
season to begin.